There is a Reason

I've seen hard times and I've been told
There isn't any wonder that I fall
Why do we suffer, crossing off the years
There must be a reason for it all

I've trusted in You, Jesus, to save me from my sin
Heaven is the place I call my home
But I keep on getting caught up in this world I'm living in
And Your voice it sometimes fades before I know

Hurtin' brings my heart to You, crying with my need
Depending on Your love to carry me
The love that shed His blood for all the world to see
This must be the reason for it all

Hurtin' brings my heart to You, a fortress in the storm
When what I wrap my heart around is gone
I give my heart so easily to the ruler of this world
When the one who loves me most will give me all

In all the things that cause me pain You give me eyes to see
I do believe but help my unbelief
I've seen hard times and I've been told
There is a reason for it all

A bucket full (by Shark Bait)

Ah, Sharkbait! He joined the Fellowship of the Traveling Smartypants because of a challenge from me, and I'm so glad that he did. He is a deep thinker for such a small fish, and he's a lawyer that would be perfectly happy to be at the bottom of the ocean.


Here's a bit of his bio:
What am I? How does one answer that question? I write, but am I a writer? I study, but am I a student? I teach, but am I a teacher? I am a lay minister, public speaking trainer, cell group leader, and much more. And in my spare time I am a lawyer to fund all my other activities. But above all, I want to be Faithful In Serving HIM. So all I reveal about myself is that I want to be a FISH.




I love the water. I mean really love it. From a young age I was always in the water and swimming around. I suppose it made choosing a fish as an avatar a bit inevitable. Which is rather ironic, because I am really not a very good swimmer. Not that I’m in imminent danger of going under for the third time in my bath tub you understand, but I have a deal with the sea. I don’t swim out into it alone, and it doesn’t try to drown me.

But I digress.

I really love water, and especially the sea. I love going to the beach, and growing up I had lots of toys for building sandcastles and such like. But my favourite was the simple plastic bucket; because once you had made your sand castle you had to collect the water from the sea to fill the moat. You did have a moat on your sandcastle didn’t you? Of course you did. So I used to collect buckets of water from the sea, and play with them.

You can tell a lot about the sea from just that one bucket. You can see that the water is wet, and tastes salty. You know what it smells like, and if you put your hand in, you know it burns any open cuts. If you took the water home and looked under a microscope, you would be able to see some of the organisms that live in the sea, and even analyse the water for chemical content.

You can tell a lot about the sea from that single bucket of water.

But it won’t tell you how unbelievable HUGE the sea is, or how deep. The mind-numbing depths or the amazing and scary animals that exist there. The strength of a single wave, or the distance a single current can carry a leaf.

In short, the bucket can show you what the sea is like, but it will be only a glimpse of the full potential. But boy does it make you want to go out there and swim in that ocean.

For us, God is like that infinite ocean. Wild, and unknowable. Yet we have Jesus, sort of like a bucket of God. A tiny glimpse of who God is, and what he is capable of, but never the whole story, just as much as we can comprehend. We see God in what we know of Jesus, but we also realise from him, just how little we actually know.

But Jesus was also just a plastic bucket, filled with God. He was fully God, but he was also fully human. What made him unique was not the plastic bucket, but the water it contained. In our effort to understand what it meant for him to be fully God, we need to learn how we can be fully human. How we can take on the nature of Christ, who was able to be the perfect plastic bucket, not because his plastic was better than ours, but because of how he was filled with the perfect water. We need to be Jesus in the world, showing people God within us. We need to be the perfect plastic bucket that Jesus was teaching us to be, not so that we can be filled, but by being filled.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go visit the sea again, and look for a re-fill. See you on the distant shore.


For more from Sharkbait, visit him at Shark Bait's Reef

Dear Punk,

Dear Punk kid who stole my son's Yu-Gi-Oh Cards,

You and I both know what you did. You told me everything I needed to know when you avoided eye contact with me. My son is a very trusting kid. Because you guys were hanging out and having fun at the comic store, he naively assumed that he could leave his deck on the table while he left for a few minutes. The emptying of the pockets and the backpack was fairly impressive, but you and I know that you stashed it where it would not be found. I know you think my son is some rich kid from the suburbs, but as I type this, he is doing extra chores to pay for the eight dollar card that he had in his possession a total of 10 minutes.

When you took that card from him, you took away something else. You see, my son (much like his mom) is a bit of a square peg that never totally fits into the round holes carved out at school. When he goes to those tournaments, he is completely free to be himself and relax with other kids who are also square pegs. He will still enjoy going to these tournaments, but now that's one more place he will have to have his guard up. You taught him a valuable lesson that only experience can teach, but still...

I want you to know something else. We went out to dinner tonight. My husband usually says the prayer for the family, but tonight my son asked if he could pray. Guess who he prayed for? That's right...he prayed for you -- that God would forgive you as he has forgiven you. Do you know what I'm going to pray for tonight? I'm going to pray that every time you steal another kid's cards, you get caught. I want you to get caught stealing in a small way so that you stop while you're ahead. It's a much bigger deal when you move on to bigger things like old ladies' purses and cars. The authorities frown on those things and you might even wind up spending some time in jail, and how suck would that be?

Even though my son is convinced that you took his card, he will still be your friend and he will continue to pray for you. He really gets the "love the sinner but not the sin" concept. But don't be surprised if he wants to talk to you about Jesus. You might want to listen.

Prodigal

DISCLAIMER: The following thoughts are from my not seminary trained mind and heart. If there is something within the content of this post that is downright unscriptural, I am counting on my friends who know better to set me straight.

Main Entry: 1prod·i·gal
Pronunciation: \ˈprä-di-gəl\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin prodigus, from prodigere to drive away, squander, from pro-, prod- forth + agere to drive — more at pro-, agent
Date: 15th century

1 : characterized by profuse or wasteful expenditure : lavish
2 : recklessly spendthrift
3 : yielding abundantly : luxuriant.

Luke 15:11-32
11Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. 12The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them.
13"Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

17"When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.' 20So he got up and went to his father.
"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

21"The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.[b]'

22"But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. 24For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.

25"Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.'

28"The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29But he answered his father, 'Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!'

31" 'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' "

To my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ:
How many sermons, bible studies and personal studies have been devoted to this parable? Personally, I've lost count. And while I love the idea of Father God welcoming home his son who "was dead and is alive again", it always left me with this feeling of an incomplete story. So often we devote so much discussion to the wayward son and the forgiving father. But it has been my experience that the older brother is mentioned merely as an afterthought. Even when the oldest is discussed at length, it is with the caveat that "at least he's not THAT guy!" (referring to the younger brother).

This never sat well with me because at the end of the story, I always said to myself, "What about the older brother? That guy was a TOOL!" Perhaps it is because I naturally identify so much with the younger brother, but I think it is more than that. Check out how Luke Chapter 15 begins:

1Now the tax collectors and "sinners" were all gathering around to hear him. 2But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

Is it too far of a stretch for me to suggest that the main intended audience for this parable (and the rest of them for that matter) is the Pharisees and the teachers of the law? Notice that the father (God) is reconciled with the younger son (sinners). What Jesus does not tell us is whether or not the older brother ever got over himself and realized his sin. So bitter was his hatred towards his younger sibling that he would not even recognize him as his brother. I don't know about you, but I find this more than just a little unsettling.

As I mentioned before, I identify with the younger son, but there have been times in my life that I have identified with the older brother. When I begin to feel righteous about my faith, I try to do a gut check to make sure that it is not self-righteousness, especially when I find myself making excuses for my lack of compassion and apathy. While we are saved by grace and not works, we will give an accounting to God as to how we lived our lives; how we loved one another.

My inspiration for the post was a book by Tim Keller called The Prodigal God. While I would highly recommend the book, what I really want to recommend is this:

If it's been awhile since you've read the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, put aside everything else you are reading for a bit. Read this amazing and life changing story of the Savior of the world with the wonder of a child. It is the most compelling love story ever written.

"In this story [of the lost sons] the father represents the Heavenly Father Jesus knew so well. St. Paul writes: 'God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not reckoning to them their trespasses' (2 Cor 5:19-American Standard Version). Jesus is showing us the God of Great Expenditure, who is nothing if not prodigal toward us, his children. God's reckless grace is our greatest hope, a life-changing experience..." (Tim Keller, The Prodigal God)

May you feel renewed by the love of a Prodigal God, whose love for you is beyond measure.

P.S. - Nick the Geek wrote a great post along these same lines. Check it out here

A Challenge to Believers: Non, New & Mature

photo and text courtesy of Chris Ayers, Westwood Baptist Church

Matthew 44:44

"Go ye therefore and construct church buildings and fellowship halls and put nice organs in your sanctuaries, and then you listen to sermons and beautiful music and sit around in Sunday School classrooms and talk about the Bible. And don't forget to buy a church van so you can take the elderly and youth on nice outings."

The scheduled post for today was more random silliness, but I'm going to save that one for tomorrow or Friday. I need to do this post. Wednesday is one of my Internet fasting days, so if you have a comment, I'll promise to get back to you on Thursday.

I also need to explain the picture. I do not think the Bible is "goofed-up" in any way. I chose this picture because I think we goof up the Word of God by sometimes taking things out of context. I believe that the Bible -- from Genesis to Revelation -- is the Story of Jesus. Yes, it is more than that, but unless we understand and believe His story, what's the point? Unlike most books, it is suggested that you begin somewhat in the middle, with the first Chapter of John, which is interesting, because in many ways, that is the beginning. (Sorry - does that make sense?)

So here's my challenge:

To the non believer: Read the first chapter of John. Does it make sense to you? I'm not asking whether or not you believe it, I'm only asking if it makes sense. Or does it seem confusing? Completely ridiculous? Unbelievable?

To the new believer: Read Luke, Chapter 15. Who, if anyone, do you identify with in this story? Who do you believe the main character(s) to be? Not who you THINK you should identify with, or who your pastor or mentor told you was the main character. What does your gut tell you?

To the mature believer: Read Luke, Chapter 15. Same question as above. But I'm asking you to put aside your Bible commentaries and attempt to read the introduction into the parables and the parables themselves as if you are reading them for the first time.

I will be working on a post that I will publish next Wednesday. Until then, would you please indulge me just a little? I've heard and read the above passages so many times that I fear I have often skimmed over some very valuable teachings contained within. Please feel free to share any preliminary thoughts with me. I only ask that they come from your heart as well as your head. I would also ask that no one get into a discussion about the merits of one particular denomination over another or disparage anyone for believing or not believing in a Divine Creator. For the purposes of this discussion, I would very much like to focus on what unites us, not what divides us.

Back to more of my distinctive ridiculousness tomorrow.

P. S. - I will also be posting something about my experiences in the weird and wonderful world of church planting on Saturday. Please tell all your church planter buddies to stop by for a visit. I think us geeky church planters need to support one another!

Dear Santa,

My Dearest Rachel,

Thank you so much for your letter. It was so nice of you to take the time to write me. Your mom and dad have been very proud of you and your brother this year. Even though you don't always get along, I know that you love each other very much. Sometimes brothers and sisters just get on each other's nerves! You are such a sweet girl. I especially love the way you are always concerned about someone else's feelings, even when they have been unkind to you. It takes a very special person to love that way.

Now as to your question of whether or not I am real. The simple answer is yes, I am. The complete answer requires a bit more complicated explanation. There are many boys and girls of all ages that either believed in me at one time, then stopped believing, or simply have never believed in me. There are even some boys and girls that have never heard of me, if you can believe that! Rachel, what I would like you to understand is that your belief in me makes me real. For as long as your heart tells you that there is a Santa Claus, that is where I will be. For those who say I am not real, I do not exist; for those who believe, I do exist.

I would also like to clear up a little rumor about me that has been going around since before I can remember. It is not true that only good boys and girls get presents from Santa. There are many very good children that get very little; there are others who have been very naughty indeed, yet get lots of toys. The decisions about who gets what toys I must leave to their moms and dads. It is not my place to make these choices.

The truth of the matter is that none of us are truly good except for Jesus. And Christmas is about celebrating God coming to earth in the form of a little baby born in Bethlehem. There may come a day when you no longer believe in me, and I want you to know that that is okay with me. Like I said before, I exist in the hearts of those who choose to believe in me. Jesus Christ, on the other hand, has no such limitations. He is real whether you choose to believe in Him or not, and He loves all of us so very much that He left His perfect home with God so we could someday join Him there. I know I am very special to you, and I appreciate that very much. But I also know you understand that Christmas is not about me; it is about celebrating the birth of Jesus -- the very best gift of all. A very Merry Christmas to you.

Love,

Kris Kringle

aka Santa Claus

P. S. - Thanks for the milk and cookies. Chocolate Chip are my favorite!

What does God look like?

When (if) you get an image of God in your mind, how do you imagine Him?

Like this?

or this?

or even this?

While I'm a bit uncomfortable admitting it, my mind's eye has pictured God in all of the above ways. (Not when I'm praying -- when I pray I tend to see the face of Jesus, which is a subject best left to another blog post.) But until today, I have never pictured God looking like this:

That is, until I checked my email today and read a prayer request that was posted on a prayer chain. In the original, unedited version of this post, I simply cut and pasted the prayer request. But because I am feeling terribly convicted about sharing a prayer request that was not meant to become fodder for some cynical blog post, I'll just give you the basics. The author of this prayer request began by stating, "There are things I want." His wish list included: a great career, a great marriage to a wonderful woman, awesome martial art skills so that he could protect the woman God may give him, a great income and a great family. He asked that those reading his request would pray that these blessings be given to him so that he could experience said blessings.

My initial reaction was, "Are you kidding me?!" I even forwarded the request to a friend saying as much. But, as I mentioned, I felt convicted and incredibly uneasy about simply raking this guy over the coals without stopping to consider what the circumstances of his life might be. Who am I to judge what blessings God may choose to bestow on him or anyone else for that matter? I actually stopped typing, turned off my computer and prayed for forgiveness. While God may determine that this man's heart needs to be changed, I realized that it is the condition of my own wretched heart that requires further examination. (*Smile* -- I love that word "wretched". Jake - if I ever write a book entitled "My Wretched Heart", I intend to give you a portion of the proceeds. But I digress.) Why did I feel compelled to share this man's prayer? Was it because it made me feel superior to him; miles ahead of him on the road of my Christian walk? Yes. I think that's it. And if that's the case, am I not missing Paul's point when he writes in Philippians 2:

If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Um...Ouch! So, with an attitude adjustment that only face time with God can achieve, I am grateful that God's grace is extended to all of us, and I am reminded of Jesus' instructions on how to pray:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for
ever. Amen.

I am going to end this post and pray that the author of this prayer request finds comfort and peace in the arms of the Savior whose grace is sufficient; whose power is made perfect in our weakness. Also, I need to pray for God to remove this giant plank from my eye...

The Prosperity Gospel (cue the scripture referenced justification hate mail)

Since I've briefly touched on the evangelical movement and the emergent/emerging movement under this big ol' tent of Christianity, I felt it would be not be fair and balanced to omit a post on the "prosperity", aka "name it and claim it", aka "wealth and health" doctrine. And because I strive to be an equal opportunity offender, I wanted to save the beast best for last.

For those of you who might be wondering what this prosperity doctrine is all about, here's a brief summary from the ace staff of researchers over at Wikipedia:

Prosperity theology is the teaching that an authentic religious belief and behavior in a person will result in their material prosperity. That is, the doctrine holds that material prosperity, particularly financial prosperity and success in business and personal life, is to be expected as external evidence of God's favor. This favor may be preordained, or granted in return for efficacious prayer, merit-making and/or appropriate faith.

Other terms have been used interchangeably with prosperity theology such as prosperity doctrine, health and wealth, etc. but it is perhaps most commonly referred to as the Prosperity Gospel.

It cannot easily be argued that the Prosperity Gospel is a part of the evangelical movement. Instead, prominent evangelicals reject the teaching as non-evangelical. Furthermore, it is worthy to note that none of the major Prosperity Gospel proponents belong to well-established evangelical organizations such as the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability or the National Association of Evangelicals

The Prosperity Gospel gained more prominence in the 1980s through the teaching of the so-called televangelists, but again, this was a movement separate from mainstream Christianity.

Prosperity theology proponents promote the idea that God wants Christians to be "abundantly" successful in every way, with special emphasis on financial prosperity.

Support for the Prosperity Gospel is believed to be found by proponents in specific Bible verses and in its narratives of the lives and lifestyles of biblical characters. Critics counter that all of the verses Prosperity Gospel proponents use are taken by them out of their textual, cultural, historical and/or literary context thus falsely supporting their claims.

Following are some Bible verses used by Prosperity teachers to support their theology:

Deuteronomy 8:18 - "But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day" (New American Standard Bible)

Malachi 3:10 - "'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the LORD of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.'" (New American Standard Bible)

John 10:10 - "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (King James Version)

3 John 2-4 - "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers"

As I was doing research for this blog post, (Yes, I actually research stuff before I put it on my blog. Feel free to re-engage your jaw back to its proper alignment at anytime during this post.) Anyway...when I began researching, I'll admit I have a bunch of preconceived notions about what these so called "health and wealth" preachers were all about. And while I was always concerned about the possibility of desperate people falling for some of their outrageous claims, I had made them into caricatures in bad shiny suits, with too much make up and giant hairdos. In that way, I had become what I despise in others: a religious, elitist snob. In order to seek redemption, I sought to provide a fair and balanced piece about their theology. Now here's the snag: the more research I did, the more I was filled with righteous anger at what is going on in my country, and now, it seems, across the globe. Whether the prefix of "self" should be placed before "righteous" is a matter of opinion and ultimately up to God to decide. When I was ignorant enough to think that the prosperity gospel was just an excuse for rich people to feel good about themselves and call themselves "good Christians", I could simply laugh at the constant parade of televangelists splattered across the airwaves and ignore seeing hundreds of little Joel Olsteen's smiling back at me from the cover of his latest book every time I went to Walmart. But the truth is far more sinister. When I first saw the following video by John Piper, I thought it was a little over the top. But he is spot on -- I get it now.

What breaks my heart about this movement is that their target audience is not the rich; it's not even the middle class. No, their target audience are the have-nots. The people who never seem to catch a break. Those who for one reason or another find themselves in want or need of a better life and a better paycheck. I'm not saying those are the only followers they have, but those are the people that have made these charlatans rich. I could go on about how they've misquoted scripture and taken it out of context to fit into their warped interpretations, but I'm not going to. Read your bible; it's pretty clear. If more of us as Christians would read and study our Bibles for ourselves instead of being spoon fed bits and pieces on Sunday morning and relying on what someone else tells us to be the truth, I'm quite confident that the followers of this so-called prosperity gospel would be greatly diminished.

At the bottom of this post are a few links to some articles I found very enlightening. Since I believe that a picture really is worth a thousand words, I'll close with a few...

Trinity Christian City International in Costa Mesa is just one of the network's holdings. TBN owns 11 homes in the adjacent gated development as well as residences in Texas, Tennesse, and Ohio. (Don Kelsen/LAT)

John Wayne Airport: Private jet owned by TBN. (Mark Boster/LAT)

Newport Beach: A TBN-owned mansion, foreground was on the market for $8 million. The network also owns one of the houses in the background. (Don Kelsen/LAT)

Among TBN's faithful followers is Olivia Foster of Westminster, who sends the network $70 a month out of her $820 disability check. (Mark Boster/LAT)

http://www.trinityfi.org/press/latimes04.html
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1533448,00.html
http://www.theopedia.com/Prosperity_gospel
http://www.rapidnet.com/~jbeard/bdm/Psychology/posit.htm

Matthew 25:31-46 (New International Version)

31"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' 41"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'44"They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45"He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Are We Inherently Prejudiced?

The following is the closing argument from the movie "A Time to Kill". If you've seen the movie or read the book, you know how it ends. If you haven't, please take a few minutes to view this scene.

Based upon personal experience, I would answer the question, "Are we inherently prejudiced?" in the affirmative. I consider myself very open and accepting of other nationalities, races and even people of faiths outside my own. I think I can honestly say that if one of my children fell in love with, and chose to marry someone of a different race or nationality, it truly would not bother me. However, born of a caucasian father and a Japanese mother, I believe my experiences and my viseral reactions are colored by my heritage.

We've all seen commercials asking us to help feed, clothe, save the children of the world. Based on your own heritage, is your reaction the same regardless of whether the children are filmed in Africa? South America? Asia? North America? If I'm being honest, my emotions are triggered more by seeing the starving Asian child than the other children in the same circumstances. It's not intentional, I'm not unaffected by the other children. But something is stirred in me on a deeper level because I sense a connection.

What about the news story about the child that was abducted, missing and/or murdered?

Does your heart ache equally for this child:

As it does for this one?:

This is not intended to be a "Guilt" post. I'm honestly curious if you have similar experiences.

If man is made in God's image, then what exactly does that mean? If Jesus were to return to earth tomorrow, would it matter what He looked like? I'm certainly not a biblical scholar, but I'd be willing to bet a dollar that the historical Jesus didn't have blue eyes and sandy blond hair. I imagine he looked very much like someone you would think twice about sitting next to on an airplane.

I guess my point is, if we're to love one another as we are commanded to do, perhaps we need to take the time to learn from each other's cultural experiences. I will never truly know what it's like to be discriminated against because I am black or latino, but I do understand what it feels like to be treated differently because of the color of my skin and the subtle differences in my facial features. Does this make me more sensitive and empathetic to the injustices inflicted on others around the world? I certainly hope so....

Christianity can Save the World (Part 2 of 2)

Okay, is it just me, or does anyone else see a resemblance? But I digress...

As promised, here is the rest of

"Christianity can save the world":

One of the paradoxes of history is the relationship between the beliefs and the practices of the early Christians as compared to those of the culture around them.

The Greco-Roman world's religious views were open and seemingly tolerant--everyone had his or her own God. The practices of the culture were quite brutal, however. The Greco-Roman world was highly stratified economically, with a huge distance between the rich and poor. By contrast, Christians insisted that there was only one true God, the dying Savior Jesus Christ. Their lives and practices were, however, remarkably welcoming to those that the culture marginalized. The early Christians mixed people from different races and classes in ways that seemed scandalous to those around them. The Greco-Roman world tended to despise the poor, but Christians gave generously not only to their own poor but to those of others faiths. In broader society, women had very low status, being subjected to high levels of female infanticide, forced marriages, and lack of economic equality. Christianity afforded women much greater security and equality than had previously existed in the ancient classical world. During the terrible urban plagues of the first two centuries, Christians cared for all the sick and dying in the city, often at the cost of their own lives.

Why would such an exclusive belief system lead to behavior that was so open to others? It was because Christians had within their belief system the strongest possible resource for practicing sacrificial service, generosity and peace-making. At the very heart of their view of reality was a man who died for his enemies, praying for their forgiveness. Reflection on this could only lead to a radically different way of dealing with those who were different from them. It meant they could not act in violence and oppression toward their opponents.

We cannot skip lightly over the fact that there have been injustices done by the church in the name of Christ, yet who can deny that the force of Christians' most fundamental beliefs can be a powerful impetus for peace-making in our troubled world?

Compare the early church to where we are today. To say that we've strayed off point would be one of the biggest understatements of this century. Many of us are so focused on what we (and others) shouldn't do that we lose focus on what we should do: "Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:27-30)

If these are in fact the greatest commandments, then shouldn't we strive to fulfill them? Should they not be a litmus test for everything else we do and say? And if "all the law and the prophets hang on these two", are we not being obedient to all of God's laws when we strive to follow these? As my friend and pastor is fond of saying, "Following Christ isn't easy, but it's not complicated." We need to get back to the basics. We need to love God and each other, and because we love God and each other, we take care of each other. Not just our family and friends, but enemies and strangers as well.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God. (John 3:16-21)

Gimme that old time religion.....It's good enough for me.

Just me here...

I'm not really sure what this blog is going to be about. But I've found myself writing really long comments on other people's blogs, so I figured I'd start my own and not subject anyone to my rambling commentaries unless they really want to read them.

Since my walk with Jesus is what's on my heart and mind most of my waking moments, (okay, that's what SHOULD be on my heart and mind most of my waking moments), I will probably blog about this often. But I'm also a painter and mural artist. So I'll probably post some pictures of recent work and give some painting how to's as well. And, oh yea, I'm also part of a core group that's planting a church! I'm sure I'll blog about that a bunch!

I guess my blog entries will be very much like my thoughts: A series of seemingly unrelated post-it notes of thoughts and commentaries from my overloaded ADD mind... "Hey look, a chicken!"